For my husband who has everything, I typically make an interesting dinner and a chocolate dessert, give him a card and more often than not I do not give him a gift unless I find something really special.

I like to send and give love and gifts all year long, not just on Valentines day to let my friends and family know that although hey are far away they are still in my thoughts.

What do you typically give or like to receive for Valentine's Day? Do you think it is all about your significant other?

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Have a great afternoon.

P.S: These are some of my grand-kids and my favorite books about love.

Saturday, January 27, 2018

Good morning! I hope that your week went well. First off let me thank you for your comments and emails about my aging post. I love a great discussion and it is always wonderful to learn something from you.

The Super Bowl is a couple of weeks away and although I am not interested in the game I love the commercials and I love the excuse to eat all sorts of tasty food. One of the things I am going to make this year is Southern Poutine, if you do not know what Poutine is, it is traditionally from Canada and it is basically french fries with gravy and cheese. It is delicious!

Thursday, January 25, 2018

Good morning! I read an article recently that said that because model Chrissy Teigen tweeted about her gray hair women are celebrating and embracing their own.

I personally do not follow Chrissy Teigen nor do I know much about her gray hair but it got me thinking about aging and aging gracefully as they say. So my question to you is, are you aging gracefully and what does that mean to you? As most of the people that read my blog are my age or a few years on either side I think it is a topic that we all might find interesting.

Truthfully, I have had greying hair since I was 18 and I have been covering it up ever since. I can say that I do not mind having highlights and low lights to blend them in and I am pretty confident that I will never let my hair go totally gray. I could be wrong but for now that is my stance.

I have never been a real "girly girl" I rarely wear make-up with the exception of eye-liner and occasionally lipstick. I do have facials and massages but I do not use anti-aging products or moisturizers because my skin is very sensitive and I always have problems when I use them. Consequently, I have laugh lines and some wrinkles on my neck. I'm OK with that.

I can say that I will never have botox injections or plastic surgery because I hate needles and frankly I am not much concerned about those things. I have nothing against them but they are not for me.

At this point in my aging process what I have learned is this, with age comes wisdom first and foremost. All of those things that weighed heavenly on you when your were young are not so important anymore or they at least they shouldn't be.

What is important as you age is your health both mental and physical; you need to find something to do everyday to keep yourself healthy and moving. It can be walking, running, yoga, Pilate's, stretching, horseback riding, etc. Whatever it is make sure that it is something that you enjoy and it will be great for your mind and body.

As you age your relationships with people change and they with become more or less important. The ones that mean the most to you are the ones that you need to nurture. Staying connected to your family and friends as you age is very important for your mental well being.

Finding meaning and joy is also something that is important as we age. The things that brought us joy and meaning when we were younger are perhaps something that as we age we are not capable of doing any longer. Perhaps your job gave you great joy but you no longer work or you were an avid runner but now have a bad knee. You need to find things to replace those interests; join a book club take up a new hobby or an old interest that you let go because you did not have the time. These activities will keep your mind and body active which is a always a good thing.

Never stop learning, when we learn new things we keep our mind sharp and healthy.

Life is precious, savor your time with your loved ones and stay healthy and active so that you can do just that. Aging is a fact of life, you can grow old and be unhealthy and grumpy or you can grow old and perhaps have a better disposition because you are able to stay active.

Whatever that means to you or how you get there is up to you. If you have suggestions or things that you are doing to stay healthy and age gracefully please share.

Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Good morning! I hope that you had a great weekend! It was beautiful, sunny and warm here. I took my pups out walking for the first time in a few weeks. I know, I know they should walk everyday but when you are 2 inches off the ground, refuse to wear a coat and its in the 20-30's I guess you get a pass.

As my husband was watching the football games this weekend I decided to make my favorite food, pizza! It is my favorite food group. In fact I like it so much I even have a Pizza Pinterest board to keep up on the best toppings, dough, etc. Check out my board if you like pizza as much as I do.

This week I made an easy, scrumptious skillet pizza using my favorite ready made frozen Rhodes dough. It doesn't get any easier than thawing your dough and gathering your favorite toppings.

Rhodes Dough Skillet Pizza

Place your cast iron skillet in the oven. Preheat oven to 450. In the meantime prepare your pizza sauce and its toppings. Roll out the thawed loaf of Rhodes dough into a round circle just bigger than your pan. Once the skillet is preheated to 450 degrees, remove the skillet from oven carefully and place on a trivet. Pour 1- 2 teaspoon of olive oil into the pan and swirl to coat the bottom and the sides. Place the rolled dough into the pan, and press to the desired size of pizza. Then layer on the sauce, and the toppings. Place skillet back into the oven and cook for 12-18 minutes. One the pizza is golden brown and the cheese is melted remove from oven. Slide from the skillet onto a cutting board and let cool. Cut into pieces and serve.

For this pizza I used:

1 Loaf Rhodes dough

Marinara Sauce

Fresh Mozzarella cheese

tomato

Italian sausage

Oregano

Fast, easy and delicious! Do you have a favorite pizza recipe? Many times I make my own dough but I do like the ease of a froze loaf sometimes and this weekend I was feeling lazy so frozen dough it was. I typically only like cheese and tomato but my husband likes meat on his pizza so I had to let him have a little sausage.

I love chocolate chip cookies! I discovered this recipe a few months ago and have since made it about 20 times for friends and family. If you enjoy a crunchy caramel cookie outside, with a soft chocolaty middle than than you will love these cookies. I think they are perfect right from the oven sprinkled with sea salt.

This post "Umoja" which is “unity” in Swahili, the national language of Kenya and of Tanzania from the blog Taste of France is fabulous! Get yourself a cup of tea, coffee, cocoa or perhaps a cocktail and savor every word. I got goosebumps reading it and had tears in my eyes by the end.

I know that many of you love movies, just for fun come and take the Iconic Movie Props quiz HERE. I got a perfect score.

Thursday, January 18, 2018

Good morning! I hope that you are having a great week so far. We are getting our second snowfall today which has me thinking of how I like to spend snow days, cold days and long winter weekends.

As I have mentioned a million times I love being home, especially in the winter. It is the perfect time to relax, regroup, read books and magazines, catch up on movies or maybe nap. Katie at Preppy Empty Nester just posted a long list of movies and tv shows if you need a few suggestions.

In order to make my winter respite more cozy I have certain items that I like to have around me and things that I like to do.

I love a fire in the fireplace and often times it is the first thing we do it the morning. Our fireplace is gas and so we simply flip a switch and it creates instant ambiance. It makes the room cozy on a dark day and the dogs love to sleep the day away in their beds in front of it.

Cozy blankets and throws are a must and I have a basket next to each couch filled with them for both me and my guests. I prefer down blankets and throws as do my pups, but my mom likes cashmere.

Candles are another way to add a cozy touch to your house. On a typical day I light a candle as soon as I am home from yoga. I love the smell and I like the glow on a grey day. Once the sun goes down I typically light a bunch of candles on my coffee table to add a warm glow to the room and make it seem more cozy.

Baking is my number one way to make the house warm and cozy on cold winter days. I love to bake homemade bread or sweet treats like chocolate chip cookies. They are the two things that I love to eat hot from the oven. Is there anything better than a piece of bread fresh from the oven slathered with butter or a warm cookie with melty chocolate.

Warm beverages are the perfect way to stay cozy as well. Tea, hot chocolate, a cappuccino or even a hot Toddy or Irish coffee at night. I am sure that everyone has their own favorite drink, mine is hot chocolate, I love it in the morning, at lunch or before bed. Frankly I love it anytime.

How do you like to make your house cozy in the winter? What are things that you like to do on a weekend in or a snow day? Do you have a favorite drink or food? What do you like to do to relax, read, tv, movies, games?

As always, please share your winter recipes, and other relaxing tips.

Have a great day and be safe in the snow and icy weather.

P.S:

Just before the holidays I posted my favorite plaid/tartan finds. Many are now on sale just in case you are interested.

Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Good morning! How was your weekend? Mine was relaxing. As I have said countless times if it is cold I am inside nesting. I putter around, organize drawers and closets, weed out things to donate and relax in between.

Last March we had the master bedroom painted Indigo Batik and when we did I took out 3 chairs, art, and more and never put it back. The room is classic but minimal and although I like it there are one or two corners that I would like to make into a reading corner. So this weekend I looked for a little inspiration on Pinterest, then put together a couple of ideas for my own corner.

Saturday, January 13, 2018

Good morning! I have been on Pinterest this morning pinning to my Valentine's Day and Holiday boards a few ideas to make for your Valentines and by that I mean all of your loved ones, including kids, grandkids, parents, friends, family and more.

If however you do not feel like making something I put together a few boards of gifts including everything from art, mugs, wine glasses, candy jars and more. Simply click the photo and you will be taken to the store. A reminder, these are affiliate links, if you click them I will earn a tiny commission.

Good Friday morning to you! I hope that you had a good week. Mine was pretty uneventful except for the bird incident. Wednesday night a bird flew in when I opened the door. An hour and a half later, after chasing the bird and my two helps pups chasing me the bird was waiting in the attic for the critter guy.

Have you ever watched a movie or a TV show and days later you are still thinking about it? I recently watched the fabulous Jewish Film Showcase movie Ahead of Time: The Extraordinary Journey of Ruth Gruber on PBS and I cannot stop thinking about what an extraordinary woman Ruth Gruber was. The youngest woman in the world to earn a PhD, which she earned at 19, she wrote her thesis on Virginia Wolf, she explored the arctic, and Alaska and she served 7 decades as a foreign correspondent and a photo journalist and this is just a small list of a few of her accomplishments. If you would like to learn more about the movie click HERE.

That is it for this week! If you have something to share, a movie, book, podcast, recipe or whatever we would love to hear about it.

Thursday, January 11, 2018

Good morning! I hope that you are having a good week so far. I have been housebound for the most part. Our roads are treacherous, so aside from driving to yoga I haven't felt like battling them.

The temperature is rising and a thaw is finally coming, the kids are back to school tomorrow after 4 snow days. It's funny because although it is only January 10th for some reason people think winter is almost over.

I however am bracing myself for a couple of cold, grey months ahead and hoping for at least one more snow fall.

I have been making a small "bucket list" of things I would like to do this winter, naturally some involve food, there are also experiences as well. This list is drop in the bucket, no pun intended, of things that I plan or trying, doing and seeing.

Did you make a list of things you want to do, see or accomplish this winter? Or do you just take it one day at a time?

Tuesday, January 9, 2018

Good morning! How was your weekend? Mine was spent at home doing a little work, cleaning and surviving the "bomb cyclone" that hit the east coast. In my area the storm started late Wednesday and I woke up Thursday to this view from my kitchen window. Eleven inches of snow, 25-30 mile and hour winds, and 50 mile and hour gusts.

The winds and the snow continued Thursday as did the dropping temperatures. Because of the limited amount of plows, which I mentioned Wednesday, we were basically homebound until yesterday.

The roads were horrible so aside from running to the store we hightailed it back home. In fact, because of the icy roads most of the schools still are closed today.

I did venture out Thursday to see how deep the snow was so I thought I would share a few of the pictures that I took while out.

Followers

Endorsements, Affiliate Links

PAID ENDORSEMENT DISCLOSURE: In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for a link to any products or services from this blog. Your support keeps this blog running and is greatly appreciated. AMAZON DISCLOSURE: The owner of this website is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon properties including, but not limited to, amazon.com, endless.com, myhabit.com, smallparts.com, or amazonwireless.com.